Bob Kravitz: Dwyane Wade should be suspended for his elbow to Lance Stephenson's head

May 25, 2013

MIAMI, FL - MAY 24: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat looks on during a play in the first half against the Indiana Pacers during Game Two of the Eastern Conference Finals at AmericanAirlines Arena on May 24, 2013 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) / Getty Images

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He shoved and threw down Rajon Rondo, dislocating the Boston guard’s shoulder.

He ran over then-Indiana guard Darren Collison like a freight train as Collison tried to go to the basket.

And that’s just a partial compilation of Dwyane Wade’s dirty plays during his extraordinary but chippy career, all of them happily captured in a YouTube mini-documentary.

Now there’s this:

In the second half of Indiana’s Game 2 Eastern Conference finals victory over the Miami Heat on Friday, Wade, trailing the play, jumped up and threw a Jimmy “Super Fly’’ Snuka elbow into Lance Stephenson’s temple.

If there’s not a suspension — or, at the very least, a massive fine — I’ll be willing to engage crazed fans in the small-market conspiracy talk.

Because it was terrible. It was egregious. It was malicious, even if Reggie Miller thought otherwise. It was on purpose, even if Steve Kerr thought it was “inadvertent.’’ And it was vintage Wade, who remains one of the dirtiest players and biggest whiners on Planet Basketball.

I have an admission: I didn’t see it when it happened.

I monitor the TV broadcast, but there are times when the headphones come off and I’m buried in my computer, trying to make deadline on yet another classic, down-to-the-last-possession game. So I didn’t see it at the time.

It was only when I returned to the hotel room at 3 a.m. that my Twitter feed was blowing up with questions about Wade’s utterly reprehensible hockey move on Stephenson. At which point, a kind follower sent the video link, and it became obvious that Wade had struck again.

There must be a suspension. At least a fine. A big one.

There’s always the inclination to dismiss anything that happens to Stephenson because he’s the boy who cries wolf, because every time he’s touched, he goes down and writhes on the ground like he’s been shot by a sniper. Stephenson is like some kind of overly dramatic soccer player who needs to be taken off the field on a stretcher every time he’s accosted.

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Not this time.

The bigger story here is that the Heat are frustrated. The Heat are on the run. The Heat know they’ve met their match, that they were fortunate to win Game 1, they lost Game 2 and now they have to come to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, where the Pacers are undefeated and beat the Heat twice during the regular season.

Here’s the problem for the Heat right now: They are LeBron James and nobody else.

They’re not the Big Three, they’re the Big One, the Really Big One.

Wade has lost his explosiveness, likely due to a knee bruise and the ravages of Father Time.

Chris Bosh has been reduced to a jump shooter, and at one point in Game 2, he had just 14 rebounds against the Pacers in 18 quarters.

They’re getting nothing from Mario Chalmers, who is dealing with a balky shoulder, made worse by a cheap shot from David West. (No, the Pacers are not choirboys, either.)

They’re getting nothing from Ray Allen, who has turned into the Jason Kidd of this series.

It got so desperate for Miami and coach Erik Spoelstra, he went to Mike Miller in the dying seconds of the first half. After Miller hit a 3, he doubled over in pain like he had a kidney stone, so he’s not someone the Heat can count upon.

If this continues, the question will be: Can James, the one-man gang, beat the Pacers all by himself?

He did it Wednesday night. He tried Friday night, finally succumbing and committing two killer turnovers down the stretch.

Spoelstra was asked Friday night about the lack of a support system for James.

“Everybody was raving about our depth last game and that we have an incredible amount of depth,” he said. “That’s one of our major strengths. And we’ll continue to go to it. And we have full confidence in those guys.

“The storylines will change, but we know the deal. It’s a very close series. We have to play well, we have to finish, we have to close out games. And we’re hoping to do that in Game 3.”

The Heat are on the ropes, but only a fool discounts the Heat, especially James. As George Hill said after Game 2, “It’s only like one person that’s more scarier than that (James), and that’s God.”

The Heat were in the same position last year, split the two games at home, even fell behind two games to one before reeling off three big wins with Wade coming to the fore. (Can we keep him away from Tom Crean, by the way?)

Already, though, you see the frustrations, specifically from Wade. The Heat really haven’t been in a playoff series yet, not after annihilating the overmatched Milwaukee Bucks and the depleted Chicago Bulls. They’re in one now, and they’re in it for their postseason lives. Their ultimate legacy as a “great’’ team rests on the outcomes of the next couple of games.

Are the grind-it-out, Big Five Pacers in their heads?

Check out the video of Wade’s flying elbow to Stephenson’s head, and you tell me.